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Wednesday, January 6, 2010

"Internet is procrastinating and I can be considered as a living proof: I'd rather surf on the net for hours with no particular reason before getting anything done. William Gibson, the author who invented the term "cyberspace" back in 1981 had a flair for that as well: in THE NET IS A WASTE OF TIME(1) published in 1996, he compares the act of surfing online to "staring blankly into space" and he says: "[I] enjoy staring blankly into space (which is also the space where novels come from)". Gibson also mentions a lack of understanding experienced between him and his wife, somehow comparable to free-jazz or noise music. Few people can actually understand these genres, but my experience tells there are a good number of people listening and appreciating this kind of music without understanding, like enjoying the stars on the sky at night. Certainly, Gibson prefers to patiently download recordings from a Japanese Beatles fan's bootlegs catalogue, randomly browse through "small patches of virtual real-estate" in front of a computer screen and truly enjoys this experience, while his wife would rather go out and take care of the flowers in the garden.